In Review

Jay and Sandra Gelb ’89 became parents the morning of November 12, 1999.

And again, four hours later.

And again, five minutes after that.

The triplets were born at 29 weeks gestation—11 weeks premature—and weighed a combined 6.3 pounds.

“They were so small you could hold one in your hand,” Jay says.

Doctors at Strong Memorial Hospital cautioned the parents not to name the babies, who were given less than a 50 percent chance of survival. The bereavement for “named” infants would be longer and more painful, so they were called Baby A, Baby B, and Baby C.

“It was a very scary time,” Sandra says.

The triplets spent three months at Strong’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Sandra took the day shift, and Jay stayed nights. “Finally,” Jay says, “we got to take our babies home.”

This past August, nearly 19 years later, Matthew, Nicole, and Robert enrolled at Rochester as members of the Class of 2022—just across the street from where they were born.

“It feels like we’ve come full circle,” Nicole says. “We’re NICU graduates.”

The Gelbs joined about 1,400 of their fellow members of the College Class of 2022 this fall, a group that represents one of the most selectively drawn cohorts in Rochester’s history. Out of a record 20,243 applications, only 29.6 percent were admitted, also the lowest percentage ever (see page 21).

Matthew and Robert are enrolled in the Barry Florescue Undergraduate Business Program, aspiring to follow their father into the banking business. Nicole plans to become a special education teacher. All three have been avid swimmers since age five and are members of Rochester’s varsity team.

The triplets attended the Harley School, an independent, college preparatory school in Rochester, from kindergarten through senior year. They’ve been heavily involved in the community. “We enjoy giving back,” Nicole says. “We realize how fortunate we are.”

They also continue a deep family connection to the University. In addition to their mother, who earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology, their late maternal great-grandmother, Anne Wolk ’58, graduated from Rochester. And their grandfather, Allan Wolk, who died in 2012, was a professor at the Simon Business School for 41 years.

“He’d be very happy we are continuing the family tradition at Rochester,” Sandra says. “He always loved the University.”

The triplets attended numerous summer sports camps and summer precollege programs at Rochester over the years.

“We looked at other places,” Nicole says, “but nothing could compare.”

It was their choice to attend the same college.

“We always do everything together,” Robert says.

Jay sees a symmetry in how his children’s lives have evolved.

“When they were in kindergarten, they were in a play dressed as bumblebees,” he says. “Who would’ve thought that bumblebees really grow up to become Yellowjackets?”